Speed, aggression, surprise; if your play style equates to something like Mike Tyson off his face on cocaine, these are the Legends for you.
3. Bangalore
Bangalore’s aggressive style in action
- Equipped with her smoke launcher and the ability to call in an artillery strike, Apex Legends’ professional soldier makes this list due to her tactical versatility. Blinding an enemy squad with smoke before closing the distance for an assault works well - this is especially true if you or your team are equipped with the Digital Threat scopes fittable to sniper systems or submachine guns, as any enemies are highlighted even when obscured by smoke (or Caustic’s gas).
- Her smoke is also able to do 10 damage to opponents - while this isn’t very useful in downing or killing the enemy, it can at least reveal them if you think a building might be occupied. And, naturally, if you’re under fire, pop your smoke and run for it: as any soldier knows, when in doubt, throw smoke and move.
- Her Rolling Thunder ability is not, arguably, as useful as Gibraltar’s own artillery. The projectiles are visible when they land, leaving no doubt as to where the danger zone is, and the time to detonate is far slower than Gibraltar’s shells, which explode on impact. However, Rolling Thunder has its uses: if a downed enemy is crawling to cover, the barrage can be used to either finish them off or at least prevent their teammates from attempting an immediate revival.
- You can also try closely following the explosions and assault the enemy in the style of World War I creeping barrage tactics (although unfortunately without the tanks). Or perhaps you find yourself struggling to get into the ring with a team waiting to finish you off as soon as you reach safety - an artillery strike might persuade them to move...or maybe you are that team waiting on the edge of the circle, in which case you can blow any stragglers to pieces as they stumble into the ring.
- At the very least, if a squad on a vantage point is giving you a hard time, the appearance of an artillery shell sticking out of the ground and about to detonate may convince them to abandon their position.
Why Bangalore is a great for aggressive play:
- Smoke allows you to blind the enemy before an assault…
- ...as well as revive teammates in relative safety
- Her ‘Double Time’ passive gives you a significant speed boost when taking fire, making her hard to hit; this is useful when attacking, but also when trying to make a quick escape
- Rolling Thunder can finish off downed enemies, or make them abandon entrenched positions
- It can also be used to effect when targeting multiple squads in a firefight of their own; drop the artillery, then mop of the survivors of both squads.
2. Gibraltar
The durable Legend in combat:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gtDj-kkXRNs
Surprise! It's not Wraith - although to be fair, she would also be a top choice for aggressive play styles, and arguably deserves a place on this list. But let's think outside the box a little...or, since we're talking about Gibraltar, outside the dome.
I appreciate that Gibraltar is not an obvious selection, not least because Gibraltar is listed as being a defensive character, but he is actually quite versatile, and very effective at supporting assaults by offense-orientated characters like Bangalore, Bloodhound, Wraith or Pathfinder. His ‘Fortified’ perk gives him a 15% damage reduction (to compensate for his massive hitbox), and his hand-held shield can block enough fire to give you the edge in an engagement.
While his Dome Shield can be used to great effect in defensive actions (Gibraltar uses items and heals squadmates at a faster rate when inside it), it can also protect you when crossing open areas, or when thrown in front of you can block fire when closing the distance for an attack.
His greatest asset, however, is his artillery strike. Although the area of effect is far smaller than Bangalore’s Rolling Thunder, the time to impact is almost instant; the warning foghorn-like sound that is heard before the barrage hits still does not usually give the enemy enough time to clear the area if the placement is accurate. As with Bangalore’s artillery, knocking people off buildings and breaking entrenched positions becomes easy work; you can also force people inside buildings before closing in for the kill.
Why Gibraltar is great:
Clever use of artillery strikes can change the course of a firefight, or even a game
Scatter and bewilder enemy squads with an unexpected barrage, or force them into cover before closing the distance
Use your gun’s shield and Dome Shield ability to lead the charge; don’t be afraid to get up close and personal
If playing with Bangalore and Pathfinder, a Gibraltar airstrike launched just after a smoke barrage and just before Pathfinder’s zipline can result in fast, shocking assaults on enemy positions: to quote Napoleon, ‘Come down on your enemy with thunder before he sees the lightning’
If playing with Bloodhound and Crypto, coordinate with your hostile-locating teammates over where to surprise the enemy with overwhelming force
1. Pathfinder
Taking a swing with Pathfinder:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zCxegHV0FDc
Mobility wins battles - just ask the Germans. Perhaps Pathfinder is a product of German engineering - who knows? He’s still trying to find his creator, after all.
Pathfinder’s Zipline ultimate ability can take you right into the fight - and providing the enemy has already been blitzed by Rolling Thunder, a smoke barrage, or Gibraltar’s airstrike, you should have the advantage in the firefight.
Of course, Pathfinder’s grapple can also give you the edge; when facing him as an opponent, there’s nothing more irritating than aiming at him before he zips off like Spiderman with a wasp in his pants. The unpredictability of his movements can make him a hard foe to combat, especially due to the fact that his teammates can surprise you while you’re concentrating on taking out Pathfinder himself.
Why Pathfinder is great:
His Zipline can take you across great distances quickly and take enemy teams by surprise
When used with Wraith’s Portals, your team can cover a lot of ground rapidly, allowing you to shock hostile forces who thought themselves safe
Use Zipline in conjunction with Bangalore or Gibraltar’s artillery to hit enemy squads with speed, aggression and surprise
Get the edge in firefights by grappling around the contact zone and hitting the enemy from obscure angles while frustrating their attempts to shoot you
